Here we are again, another new year just around the corner. What is in store for the coming year? What new adventures will unfold? Will gas make it to $5 a gallon? Of course no one knows, but each New Year's Eve we all ponder these types of questions. I suppose it's just human nature to wonder about the future.
More than likely, not much will change. Think back to the past, how many things can you remember that really knocked your socks off? Yeah, that's what I thought, not many.The biggest event I can remember in my relatively short past was 9/11. I mean that really hit everyone out of the blue!
I suppose landing on the moon was a big event, but at the time I was still in high school and it really didn't seem like such a big deal back then. We knew it was going to happen eventually, so the actual event was just a bit anticlimactic.
I think life is mostly like that, changes occur slowly and even the ones which truly impact our daily lives happen in such a way that they are perceived to have always been that way. I mean a lot of the things we have today we take for granted as having always been available to us.
Those of my generation can remember a time when had to wait a bit if we wanted to hear sound from an electronic device. For those who don't remember, I'm talking about the fact that we had to wait for the tubes to warm up. Nowadays we simply flip a switch and we get instant sound or music.
If you go back a little further, there were no devices capable of playing any kind of sound. If you wanted music you had to listen to a live performance. If you wanted to hear someone making a speech, you had to be there when they made it.
This point was brought to me recently when I purchased an older car with a tube-type radio. It does play, but takes a minute or two to warm up before you hear sound coming from the speaker. And that sound is not the kind which can be generated by even a cheap MP3 player these days, it sounds a bit on the low-fidelity side.
Computers are now pretty much taken for granted, everyone has one and most of us are connected by the marvel called the internet. I can remember a time when if you wanted to chat with someone, you picked up the phone and called them, or paid them a visit in person. Now you take a device from your pocket and type them an instant message. Not really sure if this is a step forward.
So what will the coming year bring? No idea. But I think we can safely assume that it won't seem such a big deal when it happens. We are just programmed that way I guess...
Friday, December 31, 2010
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Merry Christmas!
Okay, my past problems don't seem so bad now that I've had a week to reflect on them. Plus the fact that I spent yesterday afternoon and evening, as well as the morning through dinner time with my lovely daughter and her family played a large part in feeling better about it.
Presents have been opened, and food has been consumed, too much, but that is what the holidays are all about. I mean if you can't overeat during this time of the year, when can you do it? Good times, good food, plus spending time with your family and friends, it just doesn't get any better.
Some were missed this year, but I spoke with them on the phone and so at least kept in touch. With some this was not possible and those will never be forgotten. It just makes you appreciate all those who are still in your life all the more.
Some have not been a part of my life long enough due to circumstances beyond our control. This includes those who I never knew at all or just met very briefly. Life has a way of dealing you a set of cards and those cards are all you have to play with, no matter how much you protest.
And lastly, there are those who will not be around forever, even though it sometimes seems that way. We take their presence for granted and should not do so. Life and the time spent with family is precious and should be treasured. We can see that with those who recently left us, too soon, but then life offers no guarantees it seems.
And so another Christmas has come and is slowly fading into oblivion. Monday morning means back to work for a lot of us and soon the holiday we shared will just be a fond memory. Try to keep the spirit as long as possible and don't ever forget the times we spent together. Remember for some, it's possible this will be the last one spent with those you love.
To Huey Ray and James Louis, you are sorely missed by those who loved you. God willing one day we will meet again...
Presents have been opened, and food has been consumed, too much, but that is what the holidays are all about. I mean if you can't overeat during this time of the year, when can you do it? Good times, good food, plus spending time with your family and friends, it just doesn't get any better.
Some were missed this year, but I spoke with them on the phone and so at least kept in touch. With some this was not possible and those will never be forgotten. It just makes you appreciate all those who are still in your life all the more.
Some have not been a part of my life long enough due to circumstances beyond our control. This includes those who I never knew at all or just met very briefly. Life has a way of dealing you a set of cards and those cards are all you have to play with, no matter how much you protest.
And lastly, there are those who will not be around forever, even though it sometimes seems that way. We take their presence for granted and should not do so. Life and the time spent with family is precious and should be treasured. We can see that with those who recently left us, too soon, but then life offers no guarantees it seems.
And so another Christmas has come and is slowly fading into oblivion. Monday morning means back to work for a lot of us and soon the holiday we shared will just be a fond memory. Try to keep the spirit as long as possible and don't ever forget the times we spent together. Remember for some, it's possible this will be the last one spent with those you love.
To Huey Ray and James Louis, you are sorely missed by those who loved you. God willing one day we will meet again...
Sunday, December 19, 2010
No phone, no pool, no pets...
That line from the Roger Miller song, King of the Road, struck me as funny as I pondered my own situation. I've been without water since last Thursday. You never really know how bad things can get until you have to do without something as basic as water. I have options, but I don't really want to use them, guess I'm a little stubborn that way.
They say that cleanliness is next to Godliness, guess the Devil and his gang have moved into my house! It's times like these that I'm glad I don't have a lot of company here. They wouldn't stay long if they did pay me a visit. I have no heat in the house, except for my room and the bathroom, but that beats paying those high winter heating bills.
Of course this does not bode well for my water pipes, as every year I generally have one or two bust from freezing. It's kind of like driving in the snow, you forget how to do it until the first snow hits. I always forget to let the water run in a very small stream during the coldest nights until the first time a pipe freezes. Then I remember for the rest of the season, at least until next winter.
My problem is fixed, at least the obvious leak was repaired, at a fairly high cost this time as well. Seems I tripped going down the steep wooden stairs which lead to the celler and busted up my knee and skinned the back of my hand on the rock wall. You would think as many times as I have had to climb up and down stairs I wouldn't forget how to do that.
But I turned 59 today, maybe that is part of the reason. Things on my ol' body just don't function they way they did when I was younger. Not to mention the fact that when I do fall, it takes longer to heal and generally causes more damage. I guess the old plumbing in my house is a lot like me, just can't take the pressure of survival like it used to.
Water is still not on. I called the water guy Saturday when I repaired the leak to see if I could borrow the tool needed to turn the water on at the meter. Haven't heard back from him. I don't blame him, I wouldn't want to mess with my job on my time off either. Now that I'll be home from work tomorrow anyway, guess one more day of waiting won't hurt anything. The cat doesn't seem to mind the smell all that much.
Have to admire the planning which went into the plumbing of this place. It's setup in such a way that when a leak occurs, the cellar fills up with water. Of course the shut off for the water is located on the wall where the pipe comes in from the meter. That is all the way across the cellar from the stairs. So if you want to shut the water off you have to wade across the floor in about 3 feet of water. Not the safest thing to do considering the furnace and electric hot water heater are down there as well.
I never really understood why people move into retirement homes when they get older when they have a perfectly good home they are living in. I'm beginning to understand...
12/20 update: I have water once again and things are getting back to normal. Sure feels good to be a part of life once again!
They say that cleanliness is next to Godliness, guess the Devil and his gang have moved into my house! It's times like these that I'm glad I don't have a lot of company here. They wouldn't stay long if they did pay me a visit. I have no heat in the house, except for my room and the bathroom, but that beats paying those high winter heating bills.
Of course this does not bode well for my water pipes, as every year I generally have one or two bust from freezing. It's kind of like driving in the snow, you forget how to do it until the first snow hits. I always forget to let the water run in a very small stream during the coldest nights until the first time a pipe freezes. Then I remember for the rest of the season, at least until next winter.
My problem is fixed, at least the obvious leak was repaired, at a fairly high cost this time as well. Seems I tripped going down the steep wooden stairs which lead to the celler and busted up my knee and skinned the back of my hand on the rock wall. You would think as many times as I have had to climb up and down stairs I wouldn't forget how to do that.
But I turned 59 today, maybe that is part of the reason. Things on my ol' body just don't function they way they did when I was younger. Not to mention the fact that when I do fall, it takes longer to heal and generally causes more damage. I guess the old plumbing in my house is a lot like me, just can't take the pressure of survival like it used to.
Water is still not on. I called the water guy Saturday when I repaired the leak to see if I could borrow the tool needed to turn the water on at the meter. Haven't heard back from him. I don't blame him, I wouldn't want to mess with my job on my time off either. Now that I'll be home from work tomorrow anyway, guess one more day of waiting won't hurt anything. The cat doesn't seem to mind the smell all that much.
Have to admire the planning which went into the plumbing of this place. It's setup in such a way that when a leak occurs, the cellar fills up with water. Of course the shut off for the water is located on the wall where the pipe comes in from the meter. That is all the way across the cellar from the stairs. So if you want to shut the water off you have to wade across the floor in about 3 feet of water. Not the safest thing to do considering the furnace and electric hot water heater are down there as well.
I never really understood why people move into retirement homes when they get older when they have a perfectly good home they are living in. I'm beginning to understand...
12/20 update: I have water once again and things are getting back to normal. Sure feels good to be a part of life once again!
Sunday, December 5, 2010
A blast from the north
Looks like we are in for a few very cool days already and it's not even officially winter yet! The highs Monday and Tuesday are only supposed to be in the low 20's, so I may have to try a double layer of long underwear! Not one for liking the cold at all, I do whatever it takes to stay warm!
I just posted another chapter from my life story booklet I'm writing on my personal blog site:
http://mosslack.wordpress.com/
So anyone who wants can read that. I was told by my daughter (Autumn) that she didn't like it when the story was about dating her mother, etc. She told me leave that part out and just stick to talking about the cars. Oh well, just goes to show you can't please everyone, but to me, it's the most important part of the story, so just skip those chapters honey.
I guess it's back to work tomorrow, not looking forward to that at all. As heavy as the volume of packages have been I can just imagine what December will be like. Sure will be nice to be retired, can't wait for that to come. I've been told be some of those who have retired that it's not as much fun as one might think, but I'm more than ready to take that chance.
Oh well, back to doing laundry and making the most of the remaining time I have for this weekend. I mainly just wanted to say a few words and put a plug in for my other blog. Have fun!
I just posted another chapter from my life story booklet I'm writing on my personal blog site:
http://mosslack.wordpress.com/
So anyone who wants can read that. I was told by my daughter (Autumn) that she didn't like it when the story was about dating her mother, etc. She told me leave that part out and just stick to talking about the cars. Oh well, just goes to show you can't please everyone, but to me, it's the most important part of the story, so just skip those chapters honey.
I guess it's back to work tomorrow, not looking forward to that at all. As heavy as the volume of packages have been I can just imagine what December will be like. Sure will be nice to be retired, can't wait for that to come. I've been told be some of those who have retired that it's not as much fun as one might think, but I'm more than ready to take that chance.
Oh well, back to doing laundry and making the most of the remaining time I have for this weekend. I mainly just wanted to say a few words and put a plug in for my other blog. Have fun!
Monday, November 29, 2010
Much better than last Monday!
While not perfect, at least it was not as bad as it was last Monday. The mail was a bit lighter and the car didn't break down. Still I was out until almost 4 PM, mostly because of all the packages. Then as soon as I returned to the office I found that my parcel hamper was full again! This is getting ridiculous.
FedEx was the culprit for the packages we delivered today, but I'm sure those which arrived while I was out delivering were from UPS. At least I had a bit of help today which helped a lot, but not sure I will get any help tomorrow.
Plus I noticed the same sounds the car was making last week on the left side are now coming from the right side, so I'm sure the wheel bearing will need to be replaced on the right as well. It just doesn't end with old cars, but this still beats having to pay for a new one.
Rain is supposed to be moving in this evening and I hope it gets it all over with during the night so we don't have another wet day. Those are a royal pain as once your arm gets wet, then it makes your leg wet and so on. Even with the heater on full blast it just stays cold all day when that happens.
I keep telling myself that I only have 3 more years of this crap, but it doesn't help a lot...
FedEx was the culprit for the packages we delivered today, but I'm sure those which arrived while I was out delivering were from UPS. At least I had a bit of help today which helped a lot, but not sure I will get any help tomorrow.
Plus I noticed the same sounds the car was making last week on the left side are now coming from the right side, so I'm sure the wheel bearing will need to be replaced on the right as well. It just doesn't end with old cars, but this still beats having to pay for a new one.
Rain is supposed to be moving in this evening and I hope it gets it all over with during the night so we don't have another wet day. Those are a royal pain as once your arm gets wet, then it makes your leg wet and so on. Even with the heater on full blast it just stays cold all day when that happens.
I keep telling myself that I only have 3 more years of this crap, but it doesn't help a lot...
Monday, November 22, 2010
It all started Saturday
Try to do something nice for someone and it never fails, it comes back to haunt you! My sub at the post office said she wanted off Saturday to have Thanksgiving dinner with her boyfriend's parents. Okay, I was planning to take the day off after Thanksgiving and would have to use an annual leave day for that normally, so I told her we could just switch days. The postal service has gotten very stingy lately with any overtime pay so subs are no longer allowed to take off on the days they are scheduled to work as normally this would cause the regular carrier to receive overtime in compensation for working on their off day. So some carriers will just switch a day for a day with their sub to help them out once in a while.
We had a good bit of mail on Saturday, but I was doing fine with it and would have gotten back to the office in plenty of time, but then on the route my car decided to have a fit! All of a sudden the steering wheel jerked and the car went left of center. I was lucky there was nothing coming so I slowed down and then it happened again.
Once I reached the road where I turn to go back into town, I decided I would just go very slowly and deliver the mail as I went which I did. The car continued to exhibit very strange behavior, making noises that I had never heard before. Once I got back to town I headed straight for the post office.
I explained my problem to the supervisor and she said that one of the girls would be back shortly from their route and they could help me get the rest of the mail delivered. That was the case and we managed to get done a little after 4 PM. I figured I would go in early Monday morning and take the car to the repair shop to have it fixed in plenty of time to use it for the mail once I got it ready.
That was the plan and that is what I did. I arrived a little after 6 AM and took the car to the shop and made arrangements for someone to bring me back to the post office. At about 10:30 AM, I called the shop and they said the car would be ready in 10-15 minutes. We went to pick up the car at 11:00 AM.
The man at the shop said he could find nothing wrong either with the brakes or the front suspension and said to just go ahead and use it like it was. I know my car and I know there was something bad wrong with it. I told him so and also said that I would be seeing him again shortly. I left and loaded the car with my mail at the post office and went to begin my route.
After about 30 minutes, the car began to make the same noises again and this time I was determined to ride it out and see what would happen if I continued. Well, it didn't take long. After 5 more minutes the wheel began to lock up and the next thing I knew something broke and the whole left front side of the car dropped down. The car would still move, but just barely. I pulled it off to the side of the road and got out to have a look.
I saw that the left front wheel was now at an angle instead of being straight up and down. So I went up to the house I was in front of and asked to use the phone. Called the repair shop to come get the car and they said they would. About 45 minutes later someone arrived and we hauled the car in.
Once back at the shop it was determined that the wheel bearing on that side had basically just fell apart. I told them to fix it and called the post office. I explained the problem and the postmaster said he would contact someone to get the mail. I happened to see my sub who was delivering the mail on someone else's route and told her what the problem was. She said she would be back once she got done with that route.
It was now about 1:30 PM and work began to repair my car. Parts were ordered and arrived, not the correct parts, more parts were ordered, etc. This happened several times and shortly my sub arrived to pick up my mail. She said if I got the car fixed to come check on her as she didn't have time to do the entire route before 5 PM. I assured her I would and true to my word when the car was finally fixed, now after 4 PM, I met her out on the route and took half of the remaining mail. We managed to get done with the route and back to the office a short time after 5 PM, the truck was still there so no real harm done as far as the mail was concerned. That was when the other shoe dropped.
The postmaster asked me how these things were normally handled as far as compensation was concerned and I informed him that normally the subs were paid for their time and I paid for their mileage. He then informed me that he didn't do it that way. He said I would have to take an annual day and let the sub have the evaluated time. In other words, just like I had taken off the entire day and my sub had worked for me. Wow, this day was just getting better and better.
He also said I would be required to pay the girls that helped me Saturday as there was no money in the budget for that. I told him that they had already put the time on their time cards as that was what they were told to do by the supervisor who worked Saturday. He said he would try to see if he could find some extra money in the budget then.
This all started because I tried to do something nice for someone. It just doesn't pay...
We had a good bit of mail on Saturday, but I was doing fine with it and would have gotten back to the office in plenty of time, but then on the route my car decided to have a fit! All of a sudden the steering wheel jerked and the car went left of center. I was lucky there was nothing coming so I slowed down and then it happened again.
Once I reached the road where I turn to go back into town, I decided I would just go very slowly and deliver the mail as I went which I did. The car continued to exhibit very strange behavior, making noises that I had never heard before. Once I got back to town I headed straight for the post office.
I explained my problem to the supervisor and she said that one of the girls would be back shortly from their route and they could help me get the rest of the mail delivered. That was the case and we managed to get done a little after 4 PM. I figured I would go in early Monday morning and take the car to the repair shop to have it fixed in plenty of time to use it for the mail once I got it ready.
That was the plan and that is what I did. I arrived a little after 6 AM and took the car to the shop and made arrangements for someone to bring me back to the post office. At about 10:30 AM, I called the shop and they said the car would be ready in 10-15 minutes. We went to pick up the car at 11:00 AM.
The man at the shop said he could find nothing wrong either with the brakes or the front suspension and said to just go ahead and use it like it was. I know my car and I know there was something bad wrong with it. I told him so and also said that I would be seeing him again shortly. I left and loaded the car with my mail at the post office and went to begin my route.
After about 30 minutes, the car began to make the same noises again and this time I was determined to ride it out and see what would happen if I continued. Well, it didn't take long. After 5 more minutes the wheel began to lock up and the next thing I knew something broke and the whole left front side of the car dropped down. The car would still move, but just barely. I pulled it off to the side of the road and got out to have a look.
I saw that the left front wheel was now at an angle instead of being straight up and down. So I went up to the house I was in front of and asked to use the phone. Called the repair shop to come get the car and they said they would. About 45 minutes later someone arrived and we hauled the car in.
Once back at the shop it was determined that the wheel bearing on that side had basically just fell apart. I told them to fix it and called the post office. I explained the problem and the postmaster said he would contact someone to get the mail. I happened to see my sub who was delivering the mail on someone else's route and told her what the problem was. She said she would be back once she got done with that route.
It was now about 1:30 PM and work began to repair my car. Parts were ordered and arrived, not the correct parts, more parts were ordered, etc. This happened several times and shortly my sub arrived to pick up my mail. She said if I got the car fixed to come check on her as she didn't have time to do the entire route before 5 PM. I assured her I would and true to my word when the car was finally fixed, now after 4 PM, I met her out on the route and took half of the remaining mail. We managed to get done with the route and back to the office a short time after 5 PM, the truck was still there so no real harm done as far as the mail was concerned. That was when the other shoe dropped.
The postmaster asked me how these things were normally handled as far as compensation was concerned and I informed him that normally the subs were paid for their time and I paid for their mileage. He then informed me that he didn't do it that way. He said I would have to take an annual day and let the sub have the evaluated time. In other words, just like I had taken off the entire day and my sub had worked for me. Wow, this day was just getting better and better.
He also said I would be required to pay the girls that helped me Saturday as there was no money in the budget for that. I told him that they had already put the time on their time cards as that was what they were told to do by the supervisor who worked Saturday. He said he would try to see if he could find some extra money in the budget then.
This all started because I tried to do something nice for someone. It just doesn't pay...
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Editors Note
For those of you who have been following the continuing story of my life, you will notice that I have moved all of the past and future chapters to my previous blog site located here:
http://mosslack.wordpress.com/
I was told by more than one reader that posting this storyline on my regular informational blog was a bit confusing, so I hope this move will end any and all confusion and allow easier access to the story for those who wish to follow along.
This will also allow me to post chapters on a more regular basis as I don't have to worry so much about what else I have written on some other subject. At least that is the plan.
You should also find it much easier to post comments on that site as no affiliation with any other service is necessary. I of course welcome your comments and do appreciate when you take the time to let me know what you think of the things I write.
http://mosslack.wordpress.com/
I was told by more than one reader that posting this storyline on my regular informational blog was a bit confusing, so I hope this move will end any and all confusion and allow easier access to the story for those who wish to follow along.
This will also allow me to post chapters on a more regular basis as I don't have to worry so much about what else I have written on some other subject. At least that is the plan.
You should also find it much easier to post comments on that site as no affiliation with any other service is necessary. I of course welcome your comments and do appreciate when you take the time to let me know what you think of the things I write.
Friday, November 19, 2010
This weather sucks!
Okay, I knew it was bound to happen, the warm weather can only last so long this time of the year. Getting to the middle of November with decent temps outside is not bad, but now it's just too cold and wet to do any kind of work outside on the car. It's so lonely looking sitting there up on jack stands from where I removed the wheels last weekend.
After loading up my Monte Carlo with 3 tires on rims, 2 bare rims and 4 tires, along with the air cleaner and hood hinges from the Buick the night before, I left about 8 AM last Friday morning and headed down I-75 to Lexington, KY to Jim and Melody's place. Upon arrival I parked my car at the house and got in with Jim to begin our adventure. Our first order of business was to try to locate a replacement for the heater core in the old Buick which was pretty much shot. After not having any luck at the first radiator shop we stopped at, we hit pay dirt at the second one, where a suitable replacement was found. The end from my core had to be transferred to the new one and the owner advised it would be ready on Monday at a price of $65. Seemed very reasonable to me, and I was tickled pink! Jim said he would stop by and pick it up for me.
The rest of the day was spent mostly running around to different places. Jim is the chief transportation officer for Jim and Melody, INC. so it keeps him pretty busy. We did find time to visit Melody where she works at Sam's Club. Her job it to demo different food items so it seemed logical to visit around lunch time. Along with Melody, there are many others doing the same thing at Sam's, so we hit them all up and by that time were ready for lunch. The snack bar at Sam's is a good place for that as a huge slice of pizza (at least the size of 3 regular slices) and a soda can be had for just $2.48.
In between more transportation duties we managed to remove the old tires from the rims so they could be sand blasted later at Jim's friend Barry's place. As one of the rims did not need any work we went ahead and put a tire on it. It was discovered to have a bad valve stem so we decided to just get all new ones once the rims were ready to have tires mounted. After all of the transportation duties were complete, including picking up Melody from work, we finally headed out to Barry's to do the blasting work.
Jim had told me a bit about Barry and the kind of work he did, but seeing it all was simply amazing, I was very impressed! I suppose you would call Barry a fabrication specialist. His current project is taking 2003 Camaros and turning them into 1969 Camaros for a gentleman of seemingly unlimited funds. The process is basically to remove the front and back sheet metal from the later model Camaro and then Barry fabricates brackets and all necessary hardware to attach the '69 sheet metal to the back and front. Once his part is complete the car is taken to the body man who does the necessary body and paint work.
This apparently is a lucrative business as one of these cars was recently sold at a Barrett-Jackson action for around $55,000.00. Not too shabby at all! Barry also has some neat Anglia's at his shop he has built for himself and others. It was also neat hearing some of the stories from his and Jim's past and all the trouble they got into as kids. Ah, good times.
In no time at all, Jim had managed to sand blast all of the wheels and the air cleaner while I carried the finished ones out to the truck, so it was time to say good-bye to Barry and head off for supper. Completely unaware of what was in store next, I soon discovered we were on our way to the local Texas Roadhouse to meet up with Kathy, Jeff, Amy, Melody and Rodney for a super supper. Good food and fine company, it just doesn't get any better than this!
After saying good-byes to everyone I headed off to the Super 8 where I had checked in earlier in the afternoon. Now nearly midnight, it had been a full day and I was ready for a warm bed and sweet dreams. Unfortunately the family in the room above me were not yet ready. I know it was at least 2 AM before they finally stopped jumping up and down and running across the floor. Oh well, can't have everything!
I awoke the next morning, well rested and ready for another day of action. After I showered and checked out of the hotel, I headed back over to Jim and Melody's. Jim had already started his transportation duties for the day and was now ready to mount the tires on the freshly blasted rims. But first we needed to secure new valve stems, so after finding the needed items at the local Autozone, a trip to Harbor Freight was next to see if we could find the little tool used to install valve stems. No luck there, but we had a pair of channel locks and in no time at all we had the new stems in place.
Although the job was made somewhat easier using the Harbor Freight tire changer Jim had, getting the tires off the rims is a much easier process. But I can tell you this, it sure beats trying to put a tire on in the middle of a parking lot with basically no tools! With Jim doing much of the grunt work while I stood around and looked pretty, the tires were soon mounted and ready to be loaded back into the Monte Carlo for the trip home.
After working up an appetite, we decided to visit Melody once again and see what she was cooking up at work. Once again we hit up all of the sample tables and topped it off with another huge piece of pizza and a soda. I do believe I would have no trouble adjusting to a lifestyle like this!
We had time to kill before we went to visit my other sister (Sharon) in Crab Orchard, so we visited another one of Jim's cousins who has a place in the country he is fixing up. He also has a rather odd collection of vintage iron, mostly Ford products, scattered about his property. When it comes to old cars, I may joke around a lot about the difference between Ford's and Chevy's, but one is just as good as the other when it comes to the old ones and truth be known, there are several old Ford's which I would love to own.
Time flies when you're having fun and in no time at all it was time to head back into the city to meet up with Melody and Rodney to head south to Crab Orchard and Sharon's restaurant, The Past Time Cafe. The trip down is a long one, no matter which way you go, but well worth it as far as I'm concerned. I have not had much of a chance to talk with Sharon as she is not one for traveling, so this is about the only way to do it.
Once there we met Kathy, Jeff and Amy and all had supper again. Sharon had been told I would not be able to attend, so it was hopefully a pleasant surprise for her when I showed up. After eating she showed me where she and her husband live above the restaurant. A very nice arrangement to be sure. After more very pleasant conversation and story telling, we said good-bye once more. Sharon assured me she would visit soon when Jim and Melody come up to Belterra for a visit. I really hope she does.
After the long trip back to Lexington (took the expressway this time), I said my good-byes and thanked them for a most wonderful visit, for I still had to drive back to Vevay. Except for some rain, the trip back home was uneventful and I arrived back home well before midnight. My cat (Dixie), greeted me at the door and she seemed happy to have me back home so the food bowl would be refilled.
All in all it was a wonderful trip which I thoroughly enjoyed. It occurred to me once back home that I had not paid for a single thing I ate and this was a very different experience for me. I want to thank everyone for making my visit so pleasant and hope I can repay you all when you come up to Vevay. Especially you Sharon, don't be such a stranger!
Love you guys!
After loading up my Monte Carlo with 3 tires on rims, 2 bare rims and 4 tires, along with the air cleaner and hood hinges from the Buick the night before, I left about 8 AM last Friday morning and headed down I-75 to Lexington, KY to Jim and Melody's place. Upon arrival I parked my car at the house and got in with Jim to begin our adventure. Our first order of business was to try to locate a replacement for the heater core in the old Buick which was pretty much shot. After not having any luck at the first radiator shop we stopped at, we hit pay dirt at the second one, where a suitable replacement was found. The end from my core had to be transferred to the new one and the owner advised it would be ready on Monday at a price of $65. Seemed very reasonable to me, and I was tickled pink! Jim said he would stop by and pick it up for me.
The rest of the day was spent mostly running around to different places. Jim is the chief transportation officer for Jim and Melody, INC. so it keeps him pretty busy. We did find time to visit Melody where she works at Sam's Club. Her job it to demo different food items so it seemed logical to visit around lunch time. Along with Melody, there are many others doing the same thing at Sam's, so we hit them all up and by that time were ready for lunch. The snack bar at Sam's is a good place for that as a huge slice of pizza (at least the size of 3 regular slices) and a soda can be had for just $2.48.
In between more transportation duties we managed to remove the old tires from the rims so they could be sand blasted later at Jim's friend Barry's place. As one of the rims did not need any work we went ahead and put a tire on it. It was discovered to have a bad valve stem so we decided to just get all new ones once the rims were ready to have tires mounted. After all of the transportation duties were complete, including picking up Melody from work, we finally headed out to Barry's to do the blasting work.
Jim had told me a bit about Barry and the kind of work he did, but seeing it all was simply amazing, I was very impressed! I suppose you would call Barry a fabrication specialist. His current project is taking 2003 Camaros and turning them into 1969 Camaros for a gentleman of seemingly unlimited funds. The process is basically to remove the front and back sheet metal from the later model Camaro and then Barry fabricates brackets and all necessary hardware to attach the '69 sheet metal to the back and front. Once his part is complete the car is taken to the body man who does the necessary body and paint work.
This apparently is a lucrative business as one of these cars was recently sold at a Barrett-Jackson action for around $55,000.00. Not too shabby at all! Barry also has some neat Anglia's at his shop he has built for himself and others. It was also neat hearing some of the stories from his and Jim's past and all the trouble they got into as kids. Ah, good times.
In no time at all, Jim had managed to sand blast all of the wheels and the air cleaner while I carried the finished ones out to the truck, so it was time to say good-bye to Barry and head off for supper. Completely unaware of what was in store next, I soon discovered we were on our way to the local Texas Roadhouse to meet up with Kathy, Jeff, Amy, Melody and Rodney for a super supper. Good food and fine company, it just doesn't get any better than this!
After saying good-byes to everyone I headed off to the Super 8 where I had checked in earlier in the afternoon. Now nearly midnight, it had been a full day and I was ready for a warm bed and sweet dreams. Unfortunately the family in the room above me were not yet ready. I know it was at least 2 AM before they finally stopped jumping up and down and running across the floor. Oh well, can't have everything!
I awoke the next morning, well rested and ready for another day of action. After I showered and checked out of the hotel, I headed back over to Jim and Melody's. Jim had already started his transportation duties for the day and was now ready to mount the tires on the freshly blasted rims. But first we needed to secure new valve stems, so after finding the needed items at the local Autozone, a trip to Harbor Freight was next to see if we could find the little tool used to install valve stems. No luck there, but we had a pair of channel locks and in no time at all we had the new stems in place.
Although the job was made somewhat easier using the Harbor Freight tire changer Jim had, getting the tires off the rims is a much easier process. But I can tell you this, it sure beats trying to put a tire on in the middle of a parking lot with basically no tools! With Jim doing much of the grunt work while I stood around and looked pretty, the tires were soon mounted and ready to be loaded back into the Monte Carlo for the trip home.
After working up an appetite, we decided to visit Melody once again and see what she was cooking up at work. Once again we hit up all of the sample tables and topped it off with another huge piece of pizza and a soda. I do believe I would have no trouble adjusting to a lifestyle like this!
We had time to kill before we went to visit my other sister (Sharon) in Crab Orchard, so we visited another one of Jim's cousins who has a place in the country he is fixing up. He also has a rather odd collection of vintage iron, mostly Ford products, scattered about his property. When it comes to old cars, I may joke around a lot about the difference between Ford's and Chevy's, but one is just as good as the other when it comes to the old ones and truth be known, there are several old Ford's which I would love to own.
Time flies when you're having fun and in no time at all it was time to head back into the city to meet up with Melody and Rodney to head south to Crab Orchard and Sharon's restaurant, The Past Time Cafe. The trip down is a long one, no matter which way you go, but well worth it as far as I'm concerned. I have not had much of a chance to talk with Sharon as she is not one for traveling, so this is about the only way to do it.
Once there we met Kathy, Jeff and Amy and all had supper again. Sharon had been told I would not be able to attend, so it was hopefully a pleasant surprise for her when I showed up. After eating she showed me where she and her husband live above the restaurant. A very nice arrangement to be sure. After more very pleasant conversation and story telling, we said good-bye once more. Sharon assured me she would visit soon when Jim and Melody come up to Belterra for a visit. I really hope she does.
After the long trip back to Lexington (took the expressway this time), I said my good-byes and thanked them for a most wonderful visit, for I still had to drive back to Vevay. Except for some rain, the trip back home was uneventful and I arrived back home well before midnight. My cat (Dixie), greeted me at the door and she seemed happy to have me back home so the food bowl would be refilled.
All in all it was a wonderful trip which I thoroughly enjoyed. It occurred to me once back home that I had not paid for a single thing I ate and this was a very different experience for me. I want to thank everyone for making my visit so pleasant and hope I can repay you all when you come up to Vevay. Especially you Sharon, don't be such a stranger!
Love you guys!
Sunday, November 14, 2010
One man's love affair with motorized transport, (Chapter 3: What's Love Got To Do With It?)
All chapters from this storyline have been moved to my previous blog site located here.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
The Old Buick Moves Again!
I finally got up the courage to brave the cooler temps outside today and fiddled with the old Buick a little more. I had picked up a cheap pair of channel lock pliers at Tractor Supply yesterday while I was in Madison, so it was time to see if the brittle plastic top of the brake master cylinder could be removed. I managed to get the job done without destroying the top and saw that although no fluid was showing, the inside of the reservoir didn't appear dry.
Kevin came over and so I decided to drain the radiator and refill with fresh antifreeze so the old girl's block wouldn't freeze up and bust over the winter. With new pliers, I was able to open the pet cock on the radiator and completely drained the unit this time. Once that was done, I retightened the pet cock and poured a gallon of new antifreeze in.
At the same time, I had put the battery charger on it again so that we would have some good fresh juice to get her started again. With temps in the mid-20's the last couple of nights and no choke, I knew it would require a little extra cranking to get it going. Surprisingly it was running pretty good in no time at all.
Prior to starting I had also poured about a quart of transmission fluid in the transmission, so once the motor was warmed up I decided to move the car to a different spot in the yard. One a bit more level as well as closer to the back door. Put the car in drive and she took right off with very little effort. In no time I was where I wanted to be and by this time the engine was willing to idle.
About 3/4 of a gallon more antifreeze was added and I saw that the coolant was circulating in the radiator, which meant the thermostat had opened. While the car was sitting there idling, we filled the transmission to the proper level and once the car ran a good long time to be sure the coolant had circulated, I shut it down.
Kevin suggested that I fill the master cylinder up with brake fluid and he would lay under the back of the car to see if there were any leaks. So after filling the reservoir I replaced the top and went inside to pump the brakes to see if we had any leaks. The brake pedal went down, but would not come back up on it's own, so I used my hand to slowly pump the pedal up and down several times until it was coming back up on it's own.
Kevin said he didn't see anything leaking out underneath, but the brake pedal never did feel normal, so I assume the master cylinder will need to be rebuilt before we can examine the brake system any further. No telling how long the rubber pieces inside the brake cylinder have been sitting dry which is not good at all for such parts.
Before we covered it back up I got Kevin to read the writing on the back of the carburetor to see if we could determine what type it was. He read the word, Stromberg, which is all I really needed to know. There were basically two types of two barrel carburetors used on the 1961 Buick, one being the Stromberg and the other a Rochester. I should now be able to secure a rebuild kit for this unit.
I am extremely pleased with the progress we are making in getting this vehicle roadworthy and I am very grateful for all of the help I have been getting from Kevin, Jim and everyone on the V8 Buick forum as well. I have a 4 day weekend coming up starting Thursday, so I plan to put the four tires which Jim brought up, along with 3 of the wheels which are on the Buick, plus the spare rim I bought on Ebay into my Monte Carlo and heading down to Lexington, KY early Friday morning. Jim has a tire changer and agreed to help me get those all changed over, as well as possibly sand blasting the rims to get them ready to be painted. More fun for sure!
Kevin came over and so I decided to drain the radiator and refill with fresh antifreeze so the old girl's block wouldn't freeze up and bust over the winter. With new pliers, I was able to open the pet cock on the radiator and completely drained the unit this time. Once that was done, I retightened the pet cock and poured a gallon of new antifreeze in.
At the same time, I had put the battery charger on it again so that we would have some good fresh juice to get her started again. With temps in the mid-20's the last couple of nights and no choke, I knew it would require a little extra cranking to get it going. Surprisingly it was running pretty good in no time at all.
Prior to starting I had also poured about a quart of transmission fluid in the transmission, so once the motor was warmed up I decided to move the car to a different spot in the yard. One a bit more level as well as closer to the back door. Put the car in drive and she took right off with very little effort. In no time I was where I wanted to be and by this time the engine was willing to idle.
About 3/4 of a gallon more antifreeze was added and I saw that the coolant was circulating in the radiator, which meant the thermostat had opened. While the car was sitting there idling, we filled the transmission to the proper level and once the car ran a good long time to be sure the coolant had circulated, I shut it down.
Kevin suggested that I fill the master cylinder up with brake fluid and he would lay under the back of the car to see if there were any leaks. So after filling the reservoir I replaced the top and went inside to pump the brakes to see if we had any leaks. The brake pedal went down, but would not come back up on it's own, so I used my hand to slowly pump the pedal up and down several times until it was coming back up on it's own.
Kevin said he didn't see anything leaking out underneath, but the brake pedal never did feel normal, so I assume the master cylinder will need to be rebuilt before we can examine the brake system any further. No telling how long the rubber pieces inside the brake cylinder have been sitting dry which is not good at all for such parts.
Before we covered it back up I got Kevin to read the writing on the back of the carburetor to see if we could determine what type it was. He read the word, Stromberg, which is all I really needed to know. There were basically two types of two barrel carburetors used on the 1961 Buick, one being the Stromberg and the other a Rochester. I should now be able to secure a rebuild kit for this unit.
I am extremely pleased with the progress we are making in getting this vehicle roadworthy and I am very grateful for all of the help I have been getting from Kevin, Jim and everyone on the V8 Buick forum as well. I have a 4 day weekend coming up starting Thursday, so I plan to put the four tires which Jim brought up, along with 3 of the wheels which are on the Buick, plus the spare rim I bought on Ebay into my Monte Carlo and heading down to Lexington, KY early Friday morning. Jim has a tire changer and agreed to help me get those all changed over, as well as possibly sand blasting the rims to get them ready to be painted. More fun for sure!
Thursday, November 4, 2010
One man's love affair with motorized transport, (chapter 2, my first car).
All chapters from this storyline have been moved to my previous blog site located here.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
More on the old Buick
Well, Jim and Melody made their way up from Lexington, KY yesterday to see and help with the car. I had the rear end all jacked up in anticipation of their visit as Jim planned to re-connect the drive shaft so we could see if the old car would move on it's own. I bought some grease to pack the bearing cups and Jim made his way under the car to attach the shaft. Once that was done, we started the old beast up and dropped her into drive to see if she would pull... And pull she did!!! We then tried reverse and saw that the old girl was very willing to go backwards as well.
Once that was done, Jim pulled the dipstick on the tranny and could see no oil showing at all, so a quart or two of Dextron will have to be added before our next attempt. We could not move very far as the brakes still have not been fixed. I still can't find my channel locks to remove the old plastic top from the brake master cylinder. I know they are here somewhere.
Jim also brought up four new (used) tires to put on the Buick so it will hopefully now have some good skins which will stay pumped up for awhile. Melody brought me a special present to jazz up the wall of my garage, if I ever get it built, an authorized Buick service sign like this:
Thanks sis, I love it! Jim also took the heater core, which Kevin and I removed the other day, back with him to see if he could find a replacement or somewhere to have it fixed. Also had a good visit with them before I had to turn in for the night, we talked about a lot of stuff including the swap meets coming up next year. I can't wait!
So all in all things are happening. I have been active on the V8 Buick forum asking questions and getting answers. I was able to secure a rim for a spare tire on Ebay and I have new hood hinges on their way from Washington state. This thing may actually be drivable before winter sets in, I hope, I hope!
Once that was done, Jim pulled the dipstick on the tranny and could see no oil showing at all, so a quart or two of Dextron will have to be added before our next attempt. We could not move very far as the brakes still have not been fixed. I still can't find my channel locks to remove the old plastic top from the brake master cylinder. I know they are here somewhere.
Jim also brought up four new (used) tires to put on the Buick so it will hopefully now have some good skins which will stay pumped up for awhile. Melody brought me a special present to jazz up the wall of my garage, if I ever get it built, an authorized Buick service sign like this:
Thanks sis, I love it! Jim also took the heater core, which Kevin and I removed the other day, back with him to see if he could find a replacement or somewhere to have it fixed. Also had a good visit with them before I had to turn in for the night, we talked about a lot of stuff including the swap meets coming up next year. I can't wait!
So all in all things are happening. I have been active on the V8 Buick forum asking questions and getting answers. I was able to secure a rim for a spare tire on Ebay and I have new hood hinges on their way from Washington state. This thing may actually be drivable before winter sets in, I hope, I hope!
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
One man's love affair with motorized transport, (the story of my life, as it pertains to vehicles owned or desired).
All chapters from this storyline have been moved to my previous blog site located here.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
The Old Buick Runs!
After discovering a badly corroded coil wire the other day, it was decided to go ahead and replace the components which comprise the ignition system on my Buick, primarily consisting of the contact points, condenser, rotor button, distributor cap, spark plugs and plug wires. The ignition coil was tested and found to be good, so no need to replace it.
I went online to Autozone, O'Reilly's and NAPA last night and printed up lists with the required parts. Turned out that Autozone had the best price for most everything except the rotor button and plug wires, but O'Reilly's just down the street had both of those items at a good price.
A local friend (Kevin) and I went down to get the parts this morning and returned shortly after noon with all of the required parts. I decided to just replace the bad coil wire first to make sure it would produce a spark at the plug, which it did.
The contact points were installed next as this was a fairly easy operation. Turned out that the point set I got contained an integrated condenser, so I bought the separate one for nothing. Next the rotor button was attached and we were then ready for the plugs and wires.
This operation requires some care to make sure you put the new wires on the distributor cap in the same order as they were installed on the old cap and just hope the previous owner knew what he was doing and had them in the correct order. Once this was accomplished it was time for another startup attempt.
We first tried pouring gas directly into the throat of the carburetor which did produce the results we were looking for. Basically the motor would start and just run for a short period of time until the gas was gone. This was very exciting to actually here the old car fire up and run, even if for just a short burst each time.
Once we saw that the car would run, we decided to invest a little more money and purchase 5 gallons of premium fuel to pour directly into the gas tank. The tank was basically bone dry so we figured if there was a few splashes of old gas in there, mixing with that much fresh gas would offset any harmful qualities.
We headed off to the local Shell station and returned shortly with the 5 gallons of V-Power gas. Once this was poured into the tank we tried next to get it to pump up to the carb, but it was quickly evident that this was not going to happen.
It was then decided to remove a section of the rubber fuel line and put that directly into our smaller gas can. I first filled the rubber line which ran directly to the fuel pump to help prime the pump. Once that was done, we repeatedly tried to start the motor, but each time a violent backfire through the carburetor was seen in the form a fireball! Something was wrong.
During the plug wire transfer Kevin had temporarily lost track of where he was at, but thought he had the wires in the correct position. A check of a few web sites later we had the firing order and cylinder numbering order for the old 364 Nailhead. We found two of the wires were reversed so figured that was our problem.
Once the wires were in the correct order, the backfires mostly subsided and slowly the old gas in the fuel bowl of the carb and in the lines was burned and the car began to run a little better. At this time we decided it was time to see if the radiator would hold water and the bottom radiator hose was unloosened to the point where anti-freeze started to run out. I tightened that back up and we set out to fill up the radiator with water.
I could only get water out of my shower in the bathroom, so Kevin took jugs over to his place nearby and the radiator and block was filled 3 jugs later. The motor was run until it was sufficiently warmed up, plus we had a leaky gas connection and we decided that was enough for now. The Buick runs and that was what we set out to discover.
More work to be done as we never could get the engine to idle at all. Not holding pressure on the gas pedal would quickly cause the engine to die. I figure a carb rebuild is in order and we need to get the gas feeding as it should from the tank. That will require a new rubber line with proper hose clamps and clips to hold it to the inner fender as it should have been in the first place. When we got it, the rubber line was running along the frame very close to the extremely hot exhaust manifold! Not the best of situations.
Also I had no meter to set the dwell angle of the points, so I'm sure they are off somewhat as I just installed them and didn't even try to adjust them at all. A dwell/tach will have to be purchased as I no longer have one any more. Been a long, long time since I needed one!
Jim says he will be down next weekend to hook the driveshaft back up and bring me some more tires. Hopefully by the time he gets here I can get the motor running off the gas tank as it should so we can see if the old Dynaflow transmission will actually move the car. We won't go far as the brakes are not working. Old cars are so much fun!!!
I would also like to inform everyone at this time that I will be doing another series of posts shortly on all of the vehicles I have owned over the years (well over 100!). I've always wanted to write a book or something detailing all of these and this seems to be a great way to do it. As with the series on automotive history, there will be no schedule, just whenever I feel like posting another chapter of the saga I will. Thanks for coming along for the ride.
I went online to Autozone, O'Reilly's and NAPA last night and printed up lists with the required parts. Turned out that Autozone had the best price for most everything except the rotor button and plug wires, but O'Reilly's just down the street had both of those items at a good price.
A local friend (Kevin) and I went down to get the parts this morning and returned shortly after noon with all of the required parts. I decided to just replace the bad coil wire first to make sure it would produce a spark at the plug, which it did.
The contact points were installed next as this was a fairly easy operation. Turned out that the point set I got contained an integrated condenser, so I bought the separate one for nothing. Next the rotor button was attached and we were then ready for the plugs and wires.
This operation requires some care to make sure you put the new wires on the distributor cap in the same order as they were installed on the old cap and just hope the previous owner knew what he was doing and had them in the correct order. Once this was accomplished it was time for another startup attempt.
We first tried pouring gas directly into the throat of the carburetor which did produce the results we were looking for. Basically the motor would start and just run for a short period of time until the gas was gone. This was very exciting to actually here the old car fire up and run, even if for just a short burst each time.
Once we saw that the car would run, we decided to invest a little more money and purchase 5 gallons of premium fuel to pour directly into the gas tank. The tank was basically bone dry so we figured if there was a few splashes of old gas in there, mixing with that much fresh gas would offset any harmful qualities.
We headed off to the local Shell station and returned shortly with the 5 gallons of V-Power gas. Once this was poured into the tank we tried next to get it to pump up to the carb, but it was quickly evident that this was not going to happen.
It was then decided to remove a section of the rubber fuel line and put that directly into our smaller gas can. I first filled the rubber line which ran directly to the fuel pump to help prime the pump. Once that was done, we repeatedly tried to start the motor, but each time a violent backfire through the carburetor was seen in the form a fireball! Something was wrong.
During the plug wire transfer Kevin had temporarily lost track of where he was at, but thought he had the wires in the correct position. A check of a few web sites later we had the firing order and cylinder numbering order for the old 364 Nailhead. We found two of the wires were reversed so figured that was our problem.
Once the wires were in the correct order, the backfires mostly subsided and slowly the old gas in the fuel bowl of the carb and in the lines was burned and the car began to run a little better. At this time we decided it was time to see if the radiator would hold water and the bottom radiator hose was unloosened to the point where anti-freeze started to run out. I tightened that back up and we set out to fill up the radiator with water.
I could only get water out of my shower in the bathroom, so Kevin took jugs over to his place nearby and the radiator and block was filled 3 jugs later. The motor was run until it was sufficiently warmed up, plus we had a leaky gas connection and we decided that was enough for now. The Buick runs and that was what we set out to discover.
More work to be done as we never could get the engine to idle at all. Not holding pressure on the gas pedal would quickly cause the engine to die. I figure a carb rebuild is in order and we need to get the gas feeding as it should from the tank. That will require a new rubber line with proper hose clamps and clips to hold it to the inner fender as it should have been in the first place. When we got it, the rubber line was running along the frame very close to the extremely hot exhaust manifold! Not the best of situations.
Also I had no meter to set the dwell angle of the points, so I'm sure they are off somewhat as I just installed them and didn't even try to adjust them at all. A dwell/tach will have to be purchased as I no longer have one any more. Been a long, long time since I needed one!
Jim says he will be down next weekend to hook the driveshaft back up and bring me some more tires. Hopefully by the time he gets here I can get the motor running off the gas tank as it should so we can see if the old Dynaflow transmission will actually move the car. We won't go far as the brakes are not working. Old cars are so much fun!!!
I would also like to inform everyone at this time that I will be doing another series of posts shortly on all of the vehicles I have owned over the years (well over 100!). I've always wanted to write a book or something detailing all of these and this seems to be a great way to do it. As with the series on automotive history, there will be no schedule, just whenever I feel like posting another chapter of the saga I will. Thanks for coming along for the ride.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
The Latest Happenings
Not too much to report on the car, I did fully charge the battery and tried once again to start it, but it's not getting any fire. Pulled the wire off the coil and it is extremely corroded, so a new coil and wires are the next order of business. Believe it or not, Autozone stocks the parts I need so I hope to get those by the weekend.
Also mailed off a money order to pay for the hood hinges which are coming from Washington state, ordered a CD which contains the complete set of service manuals, and I have placed a bid on Ebay in hopes to get a wheel to use for a spare. Old cars can be fun, but they get expensive very quick!
Received words today that Autumn and family will be coming down to see the car and have a little pizza on Friday evening. Always great to see everyone and have some of the best pizza in Vevay from Roxano's!
Also mailed off a money order to pay for the hood hinges which are coming from Washington state, ordered a CD which contains the complete set of service manuals, and I have placed a bid on Ebay in hopes to get a wheel to use for a spare. Old cars can be fun, but they get expensive very quick!
Received words today that Autumn and family will be coming down to see the car and have a little pizza on Friday evening. Always great to see everyone and have some of the best pizza in Vevay from Roxano's!
Saturday, October 16, 2010
More Car Stuff
Worked some on the Buick today, got the hood off and then removed the hood hinges. One was completely broke and I figured I would just replace both of them. Also went to Harbor Freight in Florence, KY and bought a tarp to cover the engine compartment, as well as some other items.
Kevin Hayes was helping me and we discovered that the heater core was the most likely cause of the carpet being wet on the passenger side front. The heater core had been bypassed under the hood so more than likely it would indicate that it had been leaking.
Also took the first video of the car, well, Kevin did. You can see that here if you like:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFTdP19DRcw
Kevin kept saying we should pour some gas in the carb and see if the old thing would fire and I finally gave in. I don't believe the battery had enough juice to crank it sufficiently as we only got it to turn over a few times before the battery died. Never did fire so I will have to try again later with a properly charged battery and such.
I really hope I can get it running before cold weather sets in, but if not I will just cover it over for the winter and try again next spring. Such is life...
Kevin Hayes was helping me and we discovered that the heater core was the most likely cause of the carpet being wet on the passenger side front. The heater core had been bypassed under the hood so more than likely it would indicate that it had been leaking.
Also took the first video of the car, well, Kevin did. You can see that here if you like:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFTdP19DRcw
Kevin kept saying we should pour some gas in the carb and see if the old thing would fire and I finally gave in. I don't believe the battery had enough juice to crank it sufficiently as we only got it to turn over a few times before the battery died. Never did fire so I will have to try again later with a properly charged battery and such.
I really hope I can get it running before cold weather sets in, but if not I will just cover it over for the winter and try again next spring. Such is life...
Friday, October 15, 2010
The Weekend Is Here!
Been awhile since I had a Saturday and Sunday off, but that is the case this weekend. No doubt I will use part of the time to work on the old Buick, but I also have to take mom to Walmart tomorrow. I can pick up a few things I need as well, like a plastic tarp to cover the engine compartment while I fix the hood hinges.
May try to start it up this weekend, I need to make sure the oil is up to snuff and find an alternate source for gas. I really would like to drain the gas tank on the old car and flush it out before using it again.
I do have a line on a pair of hood hinges ($50 for the pair plus shipping), but I have not made my mind up yet whether or not to buy them. It's kind of difficult to know what the going rate for parts like these might be, partly because I've never tried to buy any before and also because there are not a lot of options to choose from.
A couple of other problems need to be addressed before it will move, or more precisely stop. The brake pedal currently goes to the floor so that will need to be fixed before I try to move the car. Also I don't know yet if the transmission works so that will need to be checked as well.
The radiator was empty also, a couple of possibilities there would be the system was drained to prevent freezing or the heater core let loose and it drained inside the car. The reason I suspect that is because the carpet was wet on that side, but the window on that side is also off the track so that could be the reason for the wet carpet.
Old cars can be fun to work on or a real PITA. I hope mine is fun!
May try to start it up this weekend, I need to make sure the oil is up to snuff and find an alternate source for gas. I really would like to drain the gas tank on the old car and flush it out before using it again.
I do have a line on a pair of hood hinges ($50 for the pair plus shipping), but I have not made my mind up yet whether or not to buy them. It's kind of difficult to know what the going rate for parts like these might be, partly because I've never tried to buy any before and also because there are not a lot of options to choose from.
A couple of other problems need to be addressed before it will move, or more precisely stop. The brake pedal currently goes to the floor so that will need to be fixed before I try to move the car. Also I don't know yet if the transmission works so that will need to be checked as well.
The radiator was empty also, a couple of possibilities there would be the system was drained to prevent freezing or the heater core let loose and it drained inside the car. The reason I suspect that is because the carpet was wet on that side, but the window on that side is also off the track so that could be the reason for the wet carpet.
Old cars can be fun to work on or a real PITA. I hope mine is fun!
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Back home again, in Indiana
We arrived about 3:30 AM local time this morning. I was a bit too tired to type this before I went to bed. Suffice to say the trip back was not uneventful, but thanks to the resourcefulness of my traveling companion Jim, we did make it back with the car. A million thanks Jim!
When we left the hotel on Monday morning we decided to try the old tires that were on the car to see how well they would hold up. They did fine for awhile, but Jim noticed the car swaying on the highway and so when we pulled off to get fuel, one of the old tires was found to be mostly shredded and we decided to change both so we should have no more problems.
A truck stop was nearby and so we went there to have the tires switched. An hour and $30+ later we were once again on our way. The truck stop did not have a tire changer so that was part of the reason for it costing that much. They had to basically beat the tires off and then back on the other rims.
Due to the high cost of the tolls coming through Chicago, we decided to avoid the toll roads on the way back. TomTom said it would take another 45 minutes, but with the additional charges another axle would be it was well worth the extra time, or so we thought.
Mostly because of the time of day (evening rush hour) we went through Chicago, but partly because of the small towns we traveled through, it seemed to take forever and a day to go that way. But we actually came through it with TomTom saying our original estimated arrival time would still be the same, or at least very close.
Once back in Indiana we thought we were home free and was originally supposed to arrive back home about midnight. Then disaster struck! We stopped for fuel again in Lafayette, IN and one of the tires on the car caddy was found to have a huge knot in the side. This was about 8:30 PM and no one knew where we could get a tire changed that late in the evening.
Jim had brought a spare tire for the caddy, but it was not on the rim, so we again needed to have a tire removed and mounted on a rim. The only one available to do that said it would cost $100+ which was totally ridiculous, so Jim said we could do it ourselves. I was a bit skeptical about that because we really didn't have the proper tools to do this job.
Long story short (too late!), the old tire was removed and the new one was back on the rim. A lot of words were said which I cannot repeat here during this process, but suffice to say it was a job that neither of us ever wish to repeat!
All well and good, the tire was back on the rim, but not inflated. I had a small air compressor which we tried to use, but was unable to get the bead to seal due to insufficient air pressure. The police department next door said they had a better air compressor and that was tried, but once again failed. I had a can of fix-a-flat, which also didn't work.
All along Jim had been talking about using gasoline to get it to seal. Basically you pour some gas around the bead of the tire and light it with a match. He was reluctant to try it as he had not actually done it before, but only been a witness to it's miraculous ability to accomplish this feat. I of course was very skeptical about this as well and thought sure it would result in ruining the tire and then we would be stuck until morning.
At some point though, you reach that desperate stage in an event where you are willing to try anything to get the job done. So Jim went over and got a small amount of gas and a match, imagine the attendant's surprise when he asked for that, and brought it back over to the place where we were working on the tire.
I stood back a good ways and watched in total amazement. Jim poured on the gas, lit a crumpled piece of paper and threw it on the tire. Of course it burned, but not for too long. And then just as the fire went out, the tire popped out fully onto the rim. It was totally freaky to say the least! Bravo Jim!!! We finished pumping up the tire with my small compressor and soon were on our way once the wheel was put back on the caddy and our tools all cleaned up. Total time for this fiasco was about 3 hours, plus a lot of sweat, all Jim's.
Other than a slight miscue in Indianapolis, the final part of our journey was uneventful for the most part. Just as we were within 3 miles of being home, I saw a deer in the roadway, which is very common where I live. I said "deer" out loud and once Jim saw it and reacted, the deer had changed course back into the path of our oncoming procession and was promptly run over. We don't think any real damage was done to the truck or car as Jim said he believed it hit the tire of the car caddy and was ran over.
I want to take this opportunity to publicly thank all of those who assisted with this adventure and aiding me in obtaining my dream car. Randy for the use of his truck, my mother, for a little cash advance, but mostly to my friend, and brother-in-law, Jim, without who this would not have been possible. He was the one who encouraged me to follow my desire and buy this car. He promised we would get it home if I bought it and we did. His resourcefulness, companionship and conversation during this trip was more appreciated than mere words can explain.
By the way, although I was tired last night and it completely slipped my mind, I haven't forgotten about the money you loaned me will pay it back as soon as I see you again. Thanks buddy, I really do appreciate all of your help and really look forward to those swap meets we talked about. And if you need help bringing home that Nash, let me know. I don't think I could ever be as much help as you were, but I'll be there for the ride and any other assistance I can provide.
P.S. I dumped some gas in the carb and she fired right up! JK
When we left the hotel on Monday morning we decided to try the old tires that were on the car to see how well they would hold up. They did fine for awhile, but Jim noticed the car swaying on the highway and so when we pulled off to get fuel, one of the old tires was found to be mostly shredded and we decided to change both so we should have no more problems.
A truck stop was nearby and so we went there to have the tires switched. An hour and $30+ later we were once again on our way. The truck stop did not have a tire changer so that was part of the reason for it costing that much. They had to basically beat the tires off and then back on the other rims.
Due to the high cost of the tolls coming through Chicago, we decided to avoid the toll roads on the way back. TomTom said it would take another 45 minutes, but with the additional charges another axle would be it was well worth the extra time, or so we thought.
Mostly because of the time of day (evening rush hour) we went through Chicago, but partly because of the small towns we traveled through, it seemed to take forever and a day to go that way. But we actually came through it with TomTom saying our original estimated arrival time would still be the same, or at least very close.
Once back in Indiana we thought we were home free and was originally supposed to arrive back home about midnight. Then disaster struck! We stopped for fuel again in Lafayette, IN and one of the tires on the car caddy was found to have a huge knot in the side. This was about 8:30 PM and no one knew where we could get a tire changed that late in the evening.
Jim had brought a spare tire for the caddy, but it was not on the rim, so we again needed to have a tire removed and mounted on a rim. The only one available to do that said it would cost $100+ which was totally ridiculous, so Jim said we could do it ourselves. I was a bit skeptical about that because we really didn't have the proper tools to do this job.
Long story short (too late!), the old tire was removed and the new one was back on the rim. A lot of words were said which I cannot repeat here during this process, but suffice to say it was a job that neither of us ever wish to repeat!
All well and good, the tire was back on the rim, but not inflated. I had a small air compressor which we tried to use, but was unable to get the bead to seal due to insufficient air pressure. The police department next door said they had a better air compressor and that was tried, but once again failed. I had a can of fix-a-flat, which also didn't work.
All along Jim had been talking about using gasoline to get it to seal. Basically you pour some gas around the bead of the tire and light it with a match. He was reluctant to try it as he had not actually done it before, but only been a witness to it's miraculous ability to accomplish this feat. I of course was very skeptical about this as well and thought sure it would result in ruining the tire and then we would be stuck until morning.
At some point though, you reach that desperate stage in an event where you are willing to try anything to get the job done. So Jim went over and got a small amount of gas and a match, imagine the attendant's surprise when he asked for that, and brought it back over to the place where we were working on the tire.
I stood back a good ways and watched in total amazement. Jim poured on the gas, lit a crumpled piece of paper and threw it on the tire. Of course it burned, but not for too long. And then just as the fire went out, the tire popped out fully onto the rim. It was totally freaky to say the least! Bravo Jim!!! We finished pumping up the tire with my small compressor and soon were on our way once the wheel was put back on the caddy and our tools all cleaned up. Total time for this fiasco was about 3 hours, plus a lot of sweat, all Jim's.
Other than a slight miscue in Indianapolis, the final part of our journey was uneventful for the most part. Just as we were within 3 miles of being home, I saw a deer in the roadway, which is very common where I live. I said "deer" out loud and once Jim saw it and reacted, the deer had changed course back into the path of our oncoming procession and was promptly run over. We don't think any real damage was done to the truck or car as Jim said he believed it hit the tire of the car caddy and was ran over.
I want to take this opportunity to publicly thank all of those who assisted with this adventure and aiding me in obtaining my dream car. Randy for the use of his truck, my mother, for a little cash advance, but mostly to my friend, and brother-in-law, Jim, without who this would not have been possible. He was the one who encouraged me to follow my desire and buy this car. He promised we would get it home if I bought it and we did. His resourcefulness, companionship and conversation during this trip was more appreciated than mere words can explain.
By the way, although I was tired last night and it completely slipped my mind, I haven't forgotten about the money you loaned me will pay it back as soon as I see you again. Thanks buddy, I really do appreciate all of your help and really look forward to those swap meets we talked about. And if you need help bringing home that Nash, let me know. I don't think I could ever be as much help as you were, but I'll be there for the ride and any other assistance I can provide.
P.S. I dumped some gas in the carb and she fired right up! JK
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Got the car!
Hello from beautiful downtown Melrose, MN. Coming to you live from the Super 8 here is this quaint little town. We have the Buick loaded up on the car caddy and now we will rest a bit before leaving in the morning, once again Indiana bound with my newest treasure.
The car is actually in better shape than I imagined, I hit the key and the motor turned over, the radio works, a lot of the lights work, and the condition of the car matched the description of the ad in Ebay. Very pleased with the deal.
The trip out took about 13 hours total, we left about 5:15 AM and arrived at our destination about 6:15 PM. Believe it or not, I drove all the way out here until I got off the expressway without incident, but got pulled over for not making a complete stop on the exit ramp off the highway. The young police officer was nice enough and let me off with a warning.
So now we will rest for the trip back home and I hope to write some more tomorrow evening. Night all...
The car is actually in better shape than I imagined, I hit the key and the motor turned over, the radio works, a lot of the lights work, and the condition of the car matched the description of the ad in Ebay. Very pleased with the deal.
The trip out took about 13 hours total, we left about 5:15 AM and arrived at our destination about 6:15 PM. Believe it or not, I drove all the way out here until I got off the expressway without incident, but got pulled over for not making a complete stop on the exit ramp off the highway. The young police officer was nice enough and let me off with a warning.
So now we will rest for the trip back home and I hope to write some more tomorrow evening. Night all...
Thursday, October 7, 2010
More On The Trip
Very interesting. I have done some research on 4 online map services as well as my TomTom GPS unit. Here are the results:
Mapquest: 13 hours 54 mins / 819.85 miles
Yahoo Maps: 13 hours 43 mins / 834.71 miles
Google Maps: 14 hours 26 mins / 814 miles
AAA TripTik: 12 hours 38 mins / 821 miles
TomTom: 14 hours 46 mins / 820 miles
If past experience is any indication, I would have to say that AAA is usually the closest estimate. TomTom is almost always way high and so is Google. I believe most of the routes are very much the same so obviously the formula used to figure time/distance must be a little different on each service.
Jim told me tonight that Melody may not be able to make the trip due to illness. If she wasn't sick when we left I'm sure she would be sick of hearing Jim and I talk about cars and such on the trip, so it's probably for the best. I love you Melody and hope you feel better soon!
Hope to blog a bit about the trip up at the hotel where we spend the night. Should be a fun trip!
Mapquest: 13 hours 54 mins / 819.85 miles
Yahoo Maps: 13 hours 43 mins / 834.71 miles
Google Maps: 14 hours 26 mins / 814 miles
AAA TripTik: 12 hours 38 mins / 821 miles
TomTom: 14 hours 46 mins / 820 miles
If past experience is any indication, I would have to say that AAA is usually the closest estimate. TomTom is almost always way high and so is Google. I believe most of the routes are very much the same so obviously the formula used to figure time/distance must be a little different on each service.
Jim told me tonight that Melody may not be able to make the trip due to illness. If she wasn't sick when we left I'm sure she would be sick of hearing Jim and I talk about cars and such on the trip, so it's probably for the best. I love you Melody and hope you feel better soon!
Hope to blog a bit about the trip up at the hotel where we spend the night. Should be a fun trip!
Monday, October 4, 2010
1961 Buick LeSabre Half Paid For
I went to the bank this morning and wired the seller half of the money for the Buick. I then emailed him to let him know I had done so. No word back as of yet that he has received it, but I've notice a bit of lag in his communications for this. I guess perhaps he doesn't spend all of his waking moments glued to the computer like I do.
This week at work will drag on endlessly as it always does when I have something big planned for the weekend. I guess I'll get through it, I usually do. Most everything has been worked out with Jim and Melody for the trip early Sunday morning.
The plan is to take stuff to make sandwiches and a cooler filled with drinks so we can limit stops to gas and bathroom breaks. Adventures such as this usually don't go totally as planned, but that is where the fun is!
Will blog a bit later on this if need be, otherwise the next time you hear from me on here will be from a Super 8 somewhere in Minnesota.
Late breaking news... Got the confirm email that the seller has received the money. Looks like we are headed to Minnesota after my dream car on Sunday! Woohoo!!!
This week at work will drag on endlessly as it always does when I have something big planned for the weekend. I guess I'll get through it, I usually do. Most everything has been worked out with Jim and Melody for the trip early Sunday morning.
The plan is to take stuff to make sandwiches and a cooler filled with drinks so we can limit stops to gas and bathroom breaks. Adventures such as this usually don't go totally as planned, but that is where the fun is!
Will blog a bit later on this if need be, otherwise the next time you hear from me on here will be from a Super 8 somewhere in Minnesota.
Late breaking news... Got the confirm email that the seller has received the money. Looks like we are headed to Minnesota after my dream car on Sunday! Woohoo!!!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
The Trip Plan is Complete
I believe all of the arrangements have now been made and it looks like the 800+ mile trip to Minnesota is a go for early Sunday morning (10-10). Thanks to my son-in-law to be, Randy, we now have a nifty Ford F150 to pull my prize home with! Yay!! Thanks a bunch Randy!
Jim has decided to use his car caddy instead of a full trailer, so the drive shaft will have to be pulled from the Buick before we start home. Plus my sister, Melody, who some of you may remember from the trip to NYC back in June, has decided to come along for the ride.
We hope to leave early enough to arrive at a decent time to get the car loaded on the dolly and head back a ways before stopping for the night. I hope to be able to blog a bit from the motel as well if I remember to bring one of my netbooks along with me. Then get up the next morning and head back home.
I just want to thank all the well wishers and anyone else who offered to help, it certainly was appreciated. I will post another installment hopefully when we are on the way back.
Jim has decided to use his car caddy instead of a full trailer, so the drive shaft will have to be pulled from the Buick before we start home. Plus my sister, Melody, who some of you may remember from the trip to NYC back in June, has decided to come along for the ride.
We hope to leave early enough to arrive at a decent time to get the car loaded on the dolly and head back a ways before stopping for the night. I hope to be able to blog a bit from the motel as well if I remember to bring one of my netbooks along with me. Then get up the next morning and head back home.
I just want to thank all the well wishers and anyone else who offered to help, it certainly was appreciated. I will post another installment hopefully when we are on the way back.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
I Must Be Crazy!
Okay, I do stupid things too sometimes. Like this afternoon, when I got home from work, I logged onto Ebay and bought a 1961 Buick LeSabre. Okay, not so bad you think, but the worst part is the fact that is located over 800 miles away in Minnesota and I have no truck or trailer to pull it home. Told you I do stupid things. Okay, so my brother-in-law Jim says he has a trailer, and is willing to help me load it, etc. That minor problem is half-solved.
So why do I want an old Buick? It's complicated, but let's just say it's something I have wanted for a long, long time and now I have it... Sort of. My sister Judy learned to drive in the families' '61 Buick, it was the first car I remember going with my dad to shop for and how disappointed I was when he turned down the red convertible. A lot of fond memories are associated with this car and that is the main reason I wanted it.
BTW, the very next car dad bought was a red '63 Buick convertible. Good times...
Check out my new Buick!
So why do I want an old Buick? It's complicated, but let's just say it's something I have wanted for a long, long time and now I have it... Sort of. My sister Judy learned to drive in the families' '61 Buick, it was the first car I remember going with my dad to shop for and how disappointed I was when he turned down the red convertible. A lot of fond memories are associated with this car and that is the main reason I wanted it.
BTW, the very next car dad bought was a red '63 Buick convertible. Good times...
Check out my new Buick!
Sunday, September 26, 2010
New Stuff
Those of you who are regular readers of my blog will notice the addition of a poll above. I'm using this for our Hackintosh group to help decide what action to take in the course of Google's decision to eliminate some of the features which were previously provided.
This has been indicative of others before on the Internet who offer free services only to rescind said services at a later date and time. In our case, many installation guides and other informational pages had to be moved to other providers due to Google's decision.
In addition, our Files section was rendered completely useless by some internal Google mistake, making it difficult to come up with backup copies and totally impossible in certain cases. Of course this should be a reminder for all to keep a backup copy of any important files as you never know what might happen at any given time.
This has been indicative of others before on the Internet who offer free services only to rescind said services at a later date and time. In our case, many installation guides and other informational pages had to be moved to other providers due to Google's decision.
In addition, our Files section was rendered completely useless by some internal Google mistake, making it difficult to come up with backup copies and totally impossible in certain cases. Of course this should be a reminder for all to keep a backup copy of any important files as you never know what might happen at any given time.
Monday, September 20, 2010
The Hudson Motor Car Company
Formed on February 20, 1909 by eight Detroit businessmen and named after the founder of the Hudson department store, who also provided the necessary capital, the Hudson Motor Car Company was formed to produce an automobile which would sell for less than $1000. The Hudson "Twenty" was one of the first low-priced cars on the market and more than 4000 were sold the first year.
Although Hudson came up with many innovations, dual brakes and dashboard oil and generator lights to name just a couple, the company chose to stay with a single engine design for most of it's existence. Dubbed the "Super Six", this straight six engine had a balanced crankshaft which allow for higher rotational speeds without vibration.
In 1919 the Essex was introduced for the budget minded buyers and was designed to compete with Ford and Chevrolet. Combined Essex and Hudson sales moved the company to third place by 1925. 1932 saw the Essex being phased out for a new model called the Terraplane. This lasted until 1938 when the model was renamed the Hudson 112.
Hudson also hired the first female designer in 1939, for a female perspective. During the war Hudson converted to producing war material like other auto makers and the Hudson "Invader" engine powered many of the landing craft used on D-Day. The company also had an aircraft division which produced ailerons for a large eastern airplane builder.
After the war in 1948, Hudson launched their "step-down" bodies which lasted through the 1954 model year. This referred to the placement of the passenger compartment down inside the perimeter of the frame resulting in a safer car as well and additional passenger comfort. Other auto makers were quick to follow Hudson's lead.
Hudson's strong lightweight bodies, combined with the high torque inline six engines made the 1951-1954 Hornet an auto racing champion dominating NASCAR during the period. Some records set by Hudson in the 1950's still stands even today.
But, even with Hudson's innovations and accomplishments, like other smaller manufacturing companies, they could not keep up with the Big Three auto makers. So on January 14, 1954, they merged with Nash-Kelvinator to become American Motors Corporation.
The last Hudson rolled off the assembly line in Kenosha, Wisconsin June 25, 1957. There were no ceremonies because at that time there was hopes of continuing the Hudson name on a longer wheelbase 1958 Rambler. The name was dropped even though some Hudson inspired trim was used on the Rambler Ambassador and Rambler Customs for 1958.
Possibly as a tribute to the Fabulous Hudson Hornet, AMC revived the Hornet name for it's series of compact cars in 1970.
Did You Know?
The Hudson Commodore (1941-1952) was the largest and most luxurious Hudson model ever produced.
The 1965 Chevrolet Impala sold more than a million units in North America setting a record that stands to this day.
The first automobile racetrack in the US was the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Windshield wipers were invented by a woman.
Although Hudson came up with many innovations, dual brakes and dashboard oil and generator lights to name just a couple, the company chose to stay with a single engine design for most of it's existence. Dubbed the "Super Six", this straight six engine had a balanced crankshaft which allow for higher rotational speeds without vibration.
In 1919 the Essex was introduced for the budget minded buyers and was designed to compete with Ford and Chevrolet. Combined Essex and Hudson sales moved the company to third place by 1925. 1932 saw the Essex being phased out for a new model called the Terraplane. This lasted until 1938 when the model was renamed the Hudson 112.
Hudson also hired the first female designer in 1939, for a female perspective. During the war Hudson converted to producing war material like other auto makers and the Hudson "Invader" engine powered many of the landing craft used on D-Day. The company also had an aircraft division which produced ailerons for a large eastern airplane builder.
After the war in 1948, Hudson launched their "step-down" bodies which lasted through the 1954 model year. This referred to the placement of the passenger compartment down inside the perimeter of the frame resulting in a safer car as well and additional passenger comfort. Other auto makers were quick to follow Hudson's lead.
Hudson's strong lightweight bodies, combined with the high torque inline six engines made the 1951-1954 Hornet an auto racing champion dominating NASCAR during the period. Some records set by Hudson in the 1950's still stands even today.
But, even with Hudson's innovations and accomplishments, like other smaller manufacturing companies, they could not keep up with the Big Three auto makers. So on January 14, 1954, they merged with Nash-Kelvinator to become American Motors Corporation.
The last Hudson rolled off the assembly line in Kenosha, Wisconsin June 25, 1957. There were no ceremonies because at that time there was hopes of continuing the Hudson name on a longer wheelbase 1958 Rambler. The name was dropped even though some Hudson inspired trim was used on the Rambler Ambassador and Rambler Customs for 1958.
Possibly as a tribute to the Fabulous Hudson Hornet, AMC revived the Hornet name for it's series of compact cars in 1970.
Did You Know?
The Hudson Commodore (1941-1952) was the largest and most luxurious Hudson model ever produced.
The 1965 Chevrolet Impala sold more than a million units in North America setting a record that stands to this day.
The first automobile racetrack in the US was the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Windshield wipers were invented by a woman.
American Automotive History - Part 5 - Nash and Hudson
Started in 1916, Nash Motors is one of the rare minor players that actually is still in existence, but I'm getting way ahead of the story. It was founded by a former GM president, Charles W. Nash, who acquired the Thomas B. Jeffery Company of Kenosha, Wisconsin. This company's best known automobile was the Rambler, which started production in 1902.
Jeffery also produced a four-wheel drive Quad truck, which became an important product for Nash. This vehicle served the army well in WW1 and achieved the reputation as the best 4WD truck in the country. It also helped Nash to become the leading producer of military trucks by the end of WW1.
Further ties to GM came early in Nash history when Charles convinced the chief engineer of the Oakland/Pontiac division, Nils Eric Wahlberg, to move over to Nash. The result was several innovations which are still used in vehicles today, such as flow-through ventilation.
Nash-Kelvinator Corporation
Before retiring, Charles Nash chose Kelvinator head George W Mason to succeed him. Mason accepted, but only on the condition that Nash would acquire controlling interest in Kelvinator. Nash continued as the automobile brand name under the new Nash-Kelvinator Corporation January 4, 1937. This was the larger merger of companies not in the same industry up until that time.
Innovations continued under the new company, Bed-In-A-Car, 1938, Weather Eye heater, 1939, which added a thermostat to its Conditioned Air System. Then in 1941, the Nash 600 became the first unibody construction automobile to be mass produced in the US.
Post WWII operations continued pretty much the same as before the war until 1949, when Nash produced the Airflyte, an aerodynamic body shape developed in a wind tunnel. The 600 and Ambassador models shared the same body and in 1951, the 600 was renamed the Statesman.
1950 saw the introduction of the first post war compact car, the Nash Rambler was a feature-laden convertible. 1954 Nash introduced the Metropolitan, imported from Austin in Britain. Newly redesigned 1952 full-sized models were dubbed Golden Airflytes in honor of Nash Motors' 50th anniversary.
In January 1954, Nash announced acquisition of the Hudson Motor Car Company, creating American Motors Corporation. A friendly merger designed to improve the financial condition of both companies. Beginning in 1955, all Nash and Hudson models would be produced at the Nash Kenosha plant, and would share a common body, but with individual powertrains.
Soon after the 1954 merger, George Mason died. George Romney became the new CEO and pinned the future of the company on an expanded Rambler line. He began phasing out the Nash and Hudson nameplates and so Nash/Hudson production ended June 25, 1957.
From 1959-1965, Rambler was the only marque sold by AMC, other than Metropolitan, which remained in dealer showrooms until 1962. Rambler was phased out beginning in 1965 and completely discontinued after 1969.
1970 marked the acquisition of Kaiser Jeep and in the early 1980's, AMC entered into a partnership with Renault. AMC was ultimately acquired by Chrysler Corporation in 1987, so in that fashion, it can be said they are still around.
I rambled on (pardon the pun), far too long to include the story of Hudson in this segment, so we'll get to that next time…
Did You Know?
Nash produced a sports car (1951-1954) called the Nash-Healey. 506 were produced.
The Hudson Hornet dominated NASCAR in the early 1950's.
The first traffic light was installed in Cleveland, OH in 1914.
Ford introduced the first electric trunk release in 1958.
Jeffery also produced a four-wheel drive Quad truck, which became an important product for Nash. This vehicle served the army well in WW1 and achieved the reputation as the best 4WD truck in the country. It also helped Nash to become the leading producer of military trucks by the end of WW1.
Further ties to GM came early in Nash history when Charles convinced the chief engineer of the Oakland/Pontiac division, Nils Eric Wahlberg, to move over to Nash. The result was several innovations which are still used in vehicles today, such as flow-through ventilation.
Nash-Kelvinator Corporation
Before retiring, Charles Nash chose Kelvinator head George W Mason to succeed him. Mason accepted, but only on the condition that Nash would acquire controlling interest in Kelvinator. Nash continued as the automobile brand name under the new Nash-Kelvinator Corporation January 4, 1937. This was the larger merger of companies not in the same industry up until that time.
Innovations continued under the new company, Bed-In-A-Car, 1938, Weather Eye heater, 1939, which added a thermostat to its Conditioned Air System. Then in 1941, the Nash 600 became the first unibody construction automobile to be mass produced in the US.
Post WWII operations continued pretty much the same as before the war until 1949, when Nash produced the Airflyte, an aerodynamic body shape developed in a wind tunnel. The 600 and Ambassador models shared the same body and in 1951, the 600 was renamed the Statesman.
1950 saw the introduction of the first post war compact car, the Nash Rambler was a feature-laden convertible. 1954 Nash introduced the Metropolitan, imported from Austin in Britain. Newly redesigned 1952 full-sized models were dubbed Golden Airflytes in honor of Nash Motors' 50th anniversary.
In January 1954, Nash announced acquisition of the Hudson Motor Car Company, creating American Motors Corporation. A friendly merger designed to improve the financial condition of both companies. Beginning in 1955, all Nash and Hudson models would be produced at the Nash Kenosha plant, and would share a common body, but with individual powertrains.
Soon after the 1954 merger, George Mason died. George Romney became the new CEO and pinned the future of the company on an expanded Rambler line. He began phasing out the Nash and Hudson nameplates and so Nash/Hudson production ended June 25, 1957.
From 1959-1965, Rambler was the only marque sold by AMC, other than Metropolitan, which remained in dealer showrooms until 1962. Rambler was phased out beginning in 1965 and completely discontinued after 1969.
1970 marked the acquisition of Kaiser Jeep and in the early 1980's, AMC entered into a partnership with Renault. AMC was ultimately acquired by Chrysler Corporation in 1987, so in that fashion, it can be said they are still around.
I rambled on (pardon the pun), far too long to include the story of Hudson in this segment, so we'll get to that next time…
Did You Know?
Nash produced a sports car (1951-1954) called the Nash-Healey. 506 were produced.
The Hudson Hornet dominated NASCAR in the early 1950's.
The first traffic light was installed in Cleveland, OH in 1914.
Ford introduced the first electric trunk release in 1958.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Big doings in Vevay tomorrow!
The community wide yard sale and car show on the river is tomorrow, September 18th, here in Vevay. Lot's of junk... err, treasures for sale cheap and a free car show to boot! Of course you can also sample the fine eateries here in town while you're here. For more details check this link:
http://www.vevayin.com/events/2010/09/18/default.aspx
http://www.vevayin.com/events/2010/09/18/default.aspx
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Back to the grind!
Ugh! Went back to work today after our trip to Florida. Even after taking an extra day off to rest up from the trip I wasn't prepared to go back. Each new day at the post office is an adventure, who shows up, who doesn't, will they have enough to get the mail delivered, etc.
Plus my driver's side car window would not go up last night and of course it rained. Hasn't rained for a month, but as soon as I cannot get my window up it rains. Then I dropped it off to be fixed and after work I called to see if it was done, nope. Had to drive my old route car home. The hits just keep on comin' boy!
At least I had one of my favorite meals, chicken tenders and taters from a local convenience store, with some zingers for dessert. That helped, but I will be so happy in about 3 years when I can retire. I can't wait!
Plus my driver's side car window would not go up last night and of course it rained. Hasn't rained for a month, but as soon as I cannot get my window up it rains. Then I dropped it off to be fixed and after work I called to see if it was done, nope. Had to drive my old route car home. The hits just keep on comin' boy!
At least I had one of my favorite meals, chicken tenders and taters from a local convenience store, with some zingers for dessert. That helped, but I will be so happy in about 3 years when I can retire. I can't wait!
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Florida (mini) vacation
Just got back from Florida last night, what a trip. As I said early in the summer, after the NYC trip, riding or driving that long is just too much, even with the occasional stop to eat or get gas. My feeling is if you have to travel that far, best to fly, or at least make it a 2 day drive. I think 6-8 hours a day should be the max for driving, just too stressful otherwise.
Other than the trip down and back, the vacation was great! The Gulf of Mexico is very nice and most of the people we met in and around Destin, FL were very friendly and helpful. The house that Autumn rented was very nice and located only a block from the beach. Despite some minor problems I believe everyone had a great time.
Having said that, I must admit that I am not a fan of the mini vacation, at least one situated so far from home. The NYC trip was much the same, seemed like more time was spent driving than actually enjoying the time away. Flying would have made it a bit better, but even then, such a short period of time is not the type of vacation I enjoy.
These types of mini vacations are great if they are in an adjacent state or somewhere within a 6 hour driving time radius, but not so much when you spend a full 24 hour day just getting there and back. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't enjoy seeing my family, it's just that I'm getting too old to quickly recover from a long trip such as this without some serious downtime. At least I planned for this fact by adding a rest day at home before returning to work on Thursday. That will help a lot!
Other than the trip down and back, the vacation was great! The Gulf of Mexico is very nice and most of the people we met in and around Destin, FL were very friendly and helpful. The house that Autumn rented was very nice and located only a block from the beach. Despite some minor problems I believe everyone had a great time.
Having said that, I must admit that I am not a fan of the mini vacation, at least one situated so far from home. The NYC trip was much the same, seemed like more time was spent driving than actually enjoying the time away. Flying would have made it a bit better, but even then, such a short period of time is not the type of vacation I enjoy.
These types of mini vacations are great if they are in an adjacent state or somewhere within a 6 hour driving time radius, but not so much when you spend a full 24 hour day just getting there and back. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't enjoy seeing my family, it's just that I'm getting too old to quickly recover from a long trip such as this without some serious downtime. At least I planned for this fact by adding a rest day at home before returning to work on Thursday. That will help a lot!
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Are You Stupid? Or Ignorant?
Okay, it's pet peeve time, and this is one of them. People who use certain words when they really mean something else. And no, before you ask, I'm not perfect, but I think a lot of us don't really take the time to consider what we are saying before we say it. I don't know how many times I've heard someone say, "it's just words", but words mean something. Think before you speak.
Considering most people online are using a computer to get there, it's really surprising the number of misspellings I see also. Most programs used to communicate on the internet have a built-in spell checker, so you know they know they have made a mistake. The problem is, they just don't want to take the time to correct it. Are we really in that big of a hurry? And while I'm at it, those same people seem to always be the ones who ask the questions which a simple Google search will answer for them. Hello? Anyone home?
I don't know, maybe it's me. I know as I've gotten older, I am less tolerant of people. Of course 13 years working at the local sheriff's office and 17 years working for the USPS has not helped a lot in that respect. I think I need to retire. Note, there is now a donate button on the right, so you can help me with that goal! JK
As always, your thoughts and comments are welcome. My mother still gets on me when I correct her so you might as well too!
Considering most people online are using a computer to get there, it's really surprising the number of misspellings I see also. Most programs used to communicate on the internet have a built-in spell checker, so you know they know they have made a mistake. The problem is, they just don't want to take the time to correct it. Are we really in that big of a hurry? And while I'm at it, those same people seem to always be the ones who ask the questions which a simple Google search will answer for them. Hello? Anyone home?
I don't know, maybe it's me. I know as I've gotten older, I am less tolerant of people. Of course 13 years working at the local sheriff's office and 17 years working for the USPS has not helped a lot in that respect. I think I need to retire. Note, there is now a donate button on the right, so you can help me with that goal! JK
As always, your thoughts and comments are welcome. My mother still gets on me when I correct her so you might as well too!
Saturday, August 28, 2010
My New Home
Welcome to my new home. I've made the switch to Blogger for a couple of reasons, but mostly because it is easier to use. Wordpress wasn't bad, but it didn't offer all of the features I wanted and what features it did offer were more difficult to implement. I use a lot of Google products and like the fact that they make it easy to go from one to the other using the same Google login.
Over the coming weeks I hope to archive all of my old Wordpress posts over to this site, but I will leave my old blog as it is for now, with a link to this one of course. Hope you enjoy my new site as much as I have making it!
EDIT: That didn't take as long as I thought it would. I now have all of my blog posts moved over here. I still need to add my links, etc. But that shouldn't take too long to do. Let me know what you think about my new home.
Over the coming weeks I hope to archive all of my old Wordpress posts over to this site, but I will leave my old blog as it is for now, with a link to this one of course. Hope you enjoy my new site as much as I have making it!
EDIT: That didn't take as long as I thought it would. I now have all of my blog posts moved over here. I still need to add my links, etc. But that shouldn't take too long to do. Let me know what you think about my new home.
Monday, August 23, 2010
That Time Again
Yep, once a year, the sleepy little town I live in becomes a frenzied mass of people and vehicles, all trying to get somewhere. I suppose the merchants are happy, people in town are what they strive for all year long. I hope they get their fill.
As for me, it's just a royal PITA! Not one for going down to the riverfront to partake inthe good times, I just struggle to get from my home to the store to buy some supper or whatever. I don't recall ever being asked if I wanted this to happen here, but then I don't suspect anyone was ever asked.
In case you haven't figured it out by now, the Swiss Wine Festival starts on Thursday and continues through Sunday. I'm overjoyed at the prospect. Overpriced rides and food, more drunks than you've ever seen in one place before, not to mention the Little Swiss Polka Dancers & Edelweiss Dancers.
Odd combination you say? Drunks and kids? All depends on how you look at it. Family entertainment takes on many forms in this country and small town festivals are no different than any other venue used to provide this entertainment. They strive to keep the drinking away from the children's activities, but with that many people, well...
So come one and all, our town is no different than yours, everyone loves to have fun, some more than others.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
I Love My Job
I've heard it said many, many times, men rule the world. That may or may not be true, but one thing is for certain, women make the world go 'round! This is something I have always suspected, but since my employment with the USPS, I have come to realize, this is a fact.
Keep in mind these statistics are purely unscientific, more like one rural mail carrier's observations, but I've seen it happen time after time after time. When a woman lives in a household, the mail volume for that box increases significantly. There are no exceptions, no real differences in each case.
An example would be a man, living alone. He will get his utility bills, the occasional sports or car magazine, perhaps an ad or two from Cabela's or Bass Pro Shops, and not much else. But let a woman move in and bam, the mail volume increases by a factor of 4 times as much at least!
While the difference is mainly due to more ads, even the bills and incidental mail will also be increased. Credit card statements, overdraft notices, Blockbuster, Netflix, Good Housekeeping, Elle, Oprah, People, Woman's Day, American Baby, parcels, etc. It just goes on and on!
Just think, if there were no women, there would be no JC Penny, plain and simple. Using my own route as an example, I would have to say that women account for at least 95+% of the ads that this company sends out, and they are by far the largest mailer using the USPS.
Simply put, if women ever stopped shopping, we would not have to worry about who was in the white house, it wouldn't matter a bit. The country would cease to function and we would all be standing in the soup line. So you ladies don't fret, your Kohl's ad will be here before you know it and all will be right with the world once again...
Friday, August 6, 2010
Update To My Three Displays...
I now have a new computer system which is able to access more displays. I bought an MSI P55-GD80 with an i5 750 CPU. With the help of a guy (kdawg) on the InsanelyMac forum, I now have it working with it's 3 video cards, each of which is capable of driving dual displays. IOW, as soon as I can afford it, I will add 3 more monitors on my desk for a total of 6!
Okay, I can hear some of you way in the back asking "Why?" Of course the standard reply to that would be, "Why not?", but you all know I'm not a standard kind of guy. No, the reason is simple, more display area equals more productivity.
Computers are task intensive, they thrive on doing more than one thing at a time. You've already seen how I set my email program on one monitor and web browsers on the other two, well with 3 more displays I can also be doing other things at the same time, all while keeping an eye on what is going on around me.
With this system I could also have Windows 7 running in a window on one of the displays for even more choices of things to do. Take it from me, more is better and if 3 is good, then 6 is twice as good.
And besides all of that, it's what I want and that is, after all, the bottom line...
Friday, July 30, 2010
Fact Or Fiction?
As an avid fan of the Bathroom Reader series by Uncle John, I was reading a story entitled Buried Treasure, which told tales of large fortunes lost but never found around the U.S. One of the stories especially piqued my interest as it happened near the area in which I live.
It's the story of a gang of outlaws who roamed the countryside in the mid to late 1800's called the Reno Gang. This particular story takes place in southern Indiana, near the now defunct town of Marshfield, which was located near the present day town of Scottsburg. There is some discrepancy in the amount taken in the train robbery, but suffice to say it was between $80,000 - $100,000.
Now the story in the book I read seems to depart from the more official version of the story in that it told that the outlaws were killed before they could tell anyone where the loot was buried. But I read more than one other account which says this is not the case.
Still it made for some very interesting reading, especially the way the criminals met their fate at the end of a rope by a group of men who referred to themselves as the Jackson County Vigilance Committee. I seriously doubt any of the loot was ever buried nearby, but it does make one wonder a bit.
Along these same lines are those who still think you can strike it rich by finding gold here in southern Indiana. Although they are quick to tell you it is not that easy, it can be found nearby. A Google search for southern indiana gold will show you just what I mean. A lot of the sites point to areas in and around Brown county, which is a great place to visit even if you aren't looking for the heavy metal.
For more info on the Reno Gang's Marshfield train robbery, here are a couple of links to check out:
Sunday, July 25, 2010
American Automotive History - Part 4: The Supporting Cast
Okay, you've now heard a lot about the so-called big three in the American automobile beginning chapter, but what about the minor players, how much of a role did they play? Here are just a few a the ones who made an impact for their contributions to the scene.
Studebaker
Already a major player in the carriage market at the turn of the century, Studebaker decided to enter the automobile market with a gas powered car in 1904, which was produced in cooperation with a company named Garford. As Garford began to have problems honoring their agreement with Studebaker, the decision was made to replace Garford with a company named E-M-F. But this proved to be even worse as the E-M-F produced vehicles were less reliable which reflected badly on Studebaker. So in 1911, Studebaker took over operations at E-M-F and began producing their own automobiles. Although they were an innovative company, the hand writing was on the wall for the company even as early as 1954 when they were forced to merge with Packard in an attempt to cure their ailments. Other fixes were tried over the years, but nothing could save the company. The last Studebaker rolled off the assembly line in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada on March 16, 1966. Although they had a pretty good run over the years, they finally could no longer compete with the big three.
Willys
This company in the early American auto scene was started by John Willys as the Willys-Overland Motor Company in 1912. It held it's own until the 1920 recession when Walter Chrysler was brought in by banking interests to fix the company. Changes were made and the company survived. A lot of changes came over the next years until more financial problems forced Willys to go in a different direction. Reorganized in 1936 as the Willys-Overland Motors, the company continued to struggle until the U.S. war effort chose them, along with Ford and American Bantam, to produce Jeeps. 359,851 units were produced before the end of WWII. After the war, Willys filed a successful trademark claim for the name and began producing a civilian version of the Jeep (CJ-2A). In the years since the war, the company has had many owners, Kaiser, AMC and finally Chrysler LLC which still produces Jeep vehicles.
Packard
Formed in October of 1902, this company was born out of a desire for a better automobile than had been previously made available. Started by brothers James and William Packard, along with their partner, George Weiss, the company was known for it's luxury automobiles almost from the start. From the beginning Packard automobiles introduced an number of innovations in designs, including the modern steering wheel and later on the first production 12 cylinder engine. Although it faired well for a number of years, the Great Depression in the 30's took it's toll and the company never really regained it's place in the market. Forced to produce cars in the medium price range and with no large corporation to absorb losses as Cadillac and Lincoln had, the company continued to struggle for survival. However, after the war, the company found itself in excellent financial condition, but unfortunately, management mistakes were apparent as time went on. Even after a major redesign in 1955, it was too late. Cadillac had already captured the luxury market, with Lincoln and Imperial close behind. Reliability problems caused further declines in sales and although it had merged with Studeaker in 1954, the last model, simply called a Packard, was produced for the 1958 model year.
Other minor players, such as Nash and Hudson, will be covered in the next installment of this series.
Did you know?
A Car Without A Name, was an automobile built in 1900. The idea was that you could name it whatever you wanted to.
The Checker Motors Corporation produced Checker automobiles (1922-1982). The vehicles were primarily sold to taxi cab companies.
American Chocolate was an American assembled car manufactured by a noted vending machine company (1903-1906). The car was built primarily from imported components.
The Playboy Motor Car Company (1947-1951) only produced 97 cars before going bankrupt in 1951.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Some Kind Of HOT!
Wow, here it is going on 10:00 PM and it's still 85 degrees outside! Is that hot or what? It was pretty bad out there today delivering the mail, but I managed to survive. I had several packages which I had to get out to deliver, which actually turned out to be a good thing today as it allowed me to get some relief from riding around in my little tin oven.
At least the A/C at the post office is working once again, funny how it seems to go out each and every time it gets really hot out. This time the problem was due to a power outage from a bad thunderstorm which came through the area several days ago. And in it's usual state of deficiency, the postal service had to send a tech down from the main office instead of just telling our own maintenance guy which fuse to replace. It's no big surprise the USPS is losing billions of dollars.
One bonus to the heat wave though, the girls sure like to dress cooler. That's nice to see, at least for me, being a man and all. I don't know if you gals get the same kind of kick out of seeing guys running around without a shirt on while mowing the grass, but I suppose it's possible. Of course you probably wouldn't admit to it if you did, right?
Just think, we still have the last of July and all of August yet to go. And traditionally, August is the hottest month of the year. Yay! Can't wait. Maybe mother nature will pull a fast one and we will have a mild August. That would be nice, but don't count on it.
Stay cool y'all...
Thursday, July 22, 2010
What's In A Name?
Just a short explanation of why I use mosslack as my online persona for those who have asked. It stands for Multi Operating System SLACKware, and stems from my earlier experiments into multi OS systems. The partition on which I had installed the Slackware Linux OS was named mosslack for purposes of identification on my network. I thought it was a catchy name and I started using it to refer to myself on various online lists and forums. The name kind of stuck and so here we are! Now back to your regularly scheduled blog.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
My Three Displays
Some of you may know that my computer setup has 3 displays, with two 24" wide-screen Asus monitors flanking my Acer 22" wide-screen monitor in the middle. What you may not know is how I have the displays setup, what is on each one, etc. In other words, how do I have the apps arranged so that I can keep up on everything which is going on around me.
The monitor on the right has Google Chrome on it, and I use an add-on named SpeedDial to simulate the Safari top sites feature. SpeedDial is even more customizable and very easy to use. Here is a screen shot of how I have mine setup:
On the left, I currently have the SeaMonkey web browser, which I use for those times when I need to look something up while using Google Chrome for something else. There isn't really anything exciting to see, but I will toss in a screen shot just to show you what it looks like:
The middle screen is perhaps the busiest, having both the email portion of SeaMonkey, as well as my IM client, Adium. Here is a what it looks like:
I'm not sure it will pan out, but I would like to have six displays on my next system! I have plenty of room on the desk I am using currently, but lack the capability to do six monitors with my current GA-EP45-UD3P system.
A lot of the newer iCore based system boards have provisions for 3 video cards, which could make my 6 display dream come true. Of course that takes money which I don't have at the moment, so that will have to come later on.
Also at my desk, I have an additional computer system which is able to access all three monitors also. It's a GA-P35-DS3L, but it only has a single video card. To access the 3rd display I use a USB based video card which works pretty well.
I recently added a new Mac mini to the whole mess, but it is only able to access 2 of the 3 monitors at the present time. To access the third I would have to add another USB video card as the Mac mini only has provisions for 2 video displays on board.
Just a quick look at some of the junk which clutters up my desk space...
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